dbcve.org
AcrobatApplication · Adobe

CVE-2021-21058

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2021-02-11
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 20.013.20074 or later.
See remediation →
81/100
Remediation priority · High
No privileges

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
Acrobat Reader DC versions versions 2020.013.20074 (and earlier), 2020.001.30018 (and earlier) and 2017.011.30188 (and earlier) are affected by a Memory corruption vulnerability when parsing a specially crafted PDF file. An unauthenticated attacker could leverage this vulnerability to achieve arbitrary code execution in the context of the current user. Exploitation of this issue requires user interaction in that a victim must open a malicious file.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

Memory corruption vulnerability in Adobe Acrobat Reader DC's PDF parsing logic allows an unauthenticated attacker to achieve arbitrary code execution by tricking a user into opening a specially crafted PDF file. The vulnerability affects specific versions of the 2020 and 2017 release tracks.

MitigationUpdate Adobe Acrobat Reader DC to a version newer than 2020.013.20074, 2020.001.30018, or 2017.011.30188 respectively. Implement user awareness training to avoid opening untrusted PDF files as an additional precautionary measure.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
AcrobatApplication
Affected:>= 17.011.30059, <= 17.011.30188>= 20.001.30005, <= 20.001.30018
Acrobat DcApplication
Affected:>= 15.008.20082, <= 20.013.20074
Acrobat ReaderApplication
Affected:>= 17.011.30059, <= 17.011.30188>= 20.001.30005, <= 20.001.30018
Acrobat Reader DcApplication
Affected:>= 15.008.20082, <= 20.013.20074

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Verify Adobe Acrobat or Reader installation
    Check for Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader in your installed programs. On Windows, open Control Panel > Programs and Features, or search for the application in your start menu.
    Affected if Either Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader is installed
  2. Determine the installed version number
    Open Adobe Acrobat/Reader, then go to Help > About Adobe Acrobat Reader (or About Adobe Acrobat). The version number will be displayed in the format such as 2020.013.20074 or 17.011.30188.
    Affected if The version displayed falls within any of the affected ranges: 17.011.30059 through 17.011.30188, 20.001.30005 through 20.001.30018, 15.008.20082 through 20.013.20074, or 20.001.30005 through 20.001.30018 depending on your product track
  3. Identify the specific product and release track
    Note whether you have Adobe Acrobat (the full product) or Adobe Acrobat Reader (the free viewer), and whether it is the Continuous or Classic track version. The version number format indicates this (e.g., 20.x.x.xxxx is typically the 2020 release track).
    Affected if The product matches one of the affected products listed (Acrobat, Acrobat DC, Reader, or Reader DC) and the version is within the specified range for that product
  4. Confirm the exploitation condition
    This vulnerability is triggered when a user opens a specially crafted malicious PDF file. The vulnerability exists in the PDF parsing logic.
    Affected if A vulnerable version is installed AND the user opens untrusted PDF files

You are affected if Adobe Acrobat or Reader is installed with a version number matching any of the affected ranges (17.011.30059-17.011.30188, 20.001.30005-20.001.30018, or 15.008.20082-20.013.20074 depending on your product track).

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

From vendor data
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 20.013.20074
Interim mitigation

Update Adobe Acrobat Reader DC to a version newer than 2020.013.20074, 2020.001.30018, or 2017.011.30188 respectively. Implement user awareness training to avoid opening untrusted PDF files as an additional precautionary measure.

Fix this in Acrobat Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
8.0 hours of engineering $1,440
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,304.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-21058 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2021-21058 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data